We can’t be thankful for what we don’t remember; remembering is what leads us to gratitude. How do you keep God’s blessings fresh in your mind?
“I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done.” (Psalm 143:5)
Recently, I was helping my daughter with her thank-you cards. She was writing to thank family members and friends for the gifts they’d sent for her birthday.
When I asked her what she wanted to say to one friend about the gift they’d given her, she was unsure. When I asked what they’d sent, she shrugged and said she couldn’t remember.
We eventually sorted it out and made a list of who gave what, but it got me thinking: How can we be grateful if we can’t remember our blessings?
How remembering leads us to gratitude
God blesses us with many things in life. From the small—a parking spot in front of our office on a rainy day— to the large—Jesus dying to save us from our sins.
But it’s easy to blow past those blessings if we don’t keep them in the forefront of our minds. If we don’t reminisce about the good things, we find it hard to be grateful.
Like my daughter, we can miss out on a chance to thank God and really appreciate the wonders He has worked in our lives if we don’t first stop and make a conscious list of what those wonders are.
Do you need to make a list? A few years ago, I used a gratitude journal that asked me to write three things I was thankful for each day. Sometimes it was easy, sometimes it was hard. But my remembering led me to feel gratitude where I might otherwise have not.
So, I challenge you to spend some time today remembering. Think about the things God has done for you, big and small. And let those thoughts and memories lead you to gratitude.
Have a beautiful Monday!
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This is so true. If we do not take inventory of what God is doing for us, we can miss all the beauty that surrounds us.
Yes, and it can be such a trap to fall into just looking at what we don’t have and what’s not perfect. Gratitude is the only way to focus our thoughts where they should be – on God. Thanks so much for reading!